Toy airplane



Dec- 12, 1939- v J. E. BRUBAKER TOY AIRPLANE Filed Oct. 4, 1939 U'nveni'or J E. Bra-baker, m vmm 1 was Patented Dec. 12 1939 UNiTED STAES PATIENT orrlcs TOY AIRPLANE Application October 4,

12 Claims.

This invention relates to toy airplanes, and has for one of its special objects to increase the attractiveness, play value and interest to children of toy airplanes by providing the same with landfi ing wheels which aremounted to be moved between extended and retracted positions in simulation of the retractable landing gears of commercial airplanes. Moreover, toy airplanes equipped with landing wheels which may be retracted or folded relative'to the airplane wings or body by which they are carried, have the additional important advantage that they may be compactly packaged for shipment and storage purposes.

Another special'object oi the invention is to provide a simple, practical means of easily and sturdily mounting-landing wheels on a toy airplane for movements between extended and retracted positions with respect thereto, whereby. thetoy may be produced at low cost and is capable of withstanding harsh usage.

Another special object of the invention is to ,provide simple, practical means for securely holding the landing wheels in both extended and retracted positions relative to the wings or body of the toy airplane by which they are carried.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, which will become more fully apparent as the nature of the invention. is better understood, the same consists in the novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing and defined in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein like characters of reference denote corresponding parts in the difierent views:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a toy airplane equipped with landing wheels which. are

. mounted in accordance with one practical embodiment of the invention to be swung between extended and retracted positions, the wheels being shown in their retracted positions; and

Figure 2 is a sectional view through the wings of the toy showing the landing wheels in their extended positions.

Referring to the drawing in detail, A designates, generally, a toy airplane including, as usual, a body It, wings I! and landing wheels iii.

In accordance with the invention the body til and the'wings H may be formed in any desired manner from any suitable material. For example, they may be pressed in, one piece from sheet metal or any other suitable sheet material or they maybe comprised byany desired number of sep- 1939, Serial No. 297,953

ar'ate pieces pressed from any suitable sheet material and connected with each other in any desired manner. Alternatively-they may be cast from any suitable metal or molded from any suitable plastic material either in one piece or inany desired number of separate pieces which may be joined together in any desired manner. Moreover, the landing wheels l2 may be mounted on either the body ill or the wings H. In any event said landing wheels 52 are carried by struts I3 and together with said struts constitute landing wheel units which are pivotally mounted on the body it! or on the wings H, as the case may be, whereby they may be swung between retracted and extended positions as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing, respectively.

It is, of course, within the purview of the invention to pivotally mount the landing wheel units on the body it or on the wings H in any suitable or desired manner, and to provide any suitable or desired means to hold said units in retracted and extended positions relative to the body ill or the wings I! as the case may be. However, simplicity and economy in manufacture as well as ruggedness and strength are important considerations concerning both the manner of pivotally mounting the landing wheel units on the body It or, the wings H and the means for holding said units in retracted and extended positions. There accordingly have been devised means for these purposes which are strong and sturdy and which, at the same time, are quite simple and of low production cost.

For pivotally mounting the landing wheel units on the body it or the wings H, the said body or wings, as the case may be, is, or are, provided on its or their under side or sides with spaced pairs of spaced apart lugs 94, i l and the struts i3 are provided at their upper ends with trunnions l5, l5. The lugs I i, it are pressed from, or are cast on, or are suitably fastened to the body ill or the wings it and in their original form the lugs of each pair are sufiiciently spaced-apart throughout their lengths to permit a related trunnion E5 to be inserted between them. The trunnions of g each strut l3 are inserted between related pairs of the lugs and the free end portions of the lugs then are bent toward one another about the trunnions, whereby the latter are held confined between the lugs. The struts it thus are pivotally connected to the body It or the wings H, as the case may be, in a simple, economical and sturdy manner.

For holding the struts l3 in extended and retracted positions there is associated with each strut a related bowed leaf spring I6. Each spring I6 is confined between the upper end of its related strut l3 and the under side of the body ID or wing H, as the case may be, to which the strut is pivoted, and extends at right angles to the pivotal axis of the strut. Moreover, the body ill or the wings II, as the case may be, is, or are, provided with pressed or cast ribs I 1 forming U-shaped pockets which accommodate the ends of the springs l6 and hold said springs against endwlse and sidewise movements. The springs are bowed downwardly where they overlie the upper ends of the struts I3 and exert constant downward pressure upon the said upper ends of said struts. At its upper end each strut I3 is provided with a finger or fingers l8 for engagement with a lug or lugs 19 on the body In or on the related wing I I, as the case may be, to prevent swinging movement of the strut in one direction beyond an extended position in which it is disposed vertically or substantially vertically relative to said body or wing. At its upper end each strut also is provided with a lug 20 having top and free edge portions which are offset laterally with respect to the axis of rotation of the strut and which respectively cooperate with the related spring IE to hold the strut in extended and retracted positions. In other words, when the strut is in an extended position depending vertically or substantially vertically from the body ill or the related wing II, as the case may be, the related spring [6, by its downward pressure against the top face of the lug 20, tends to rotate the strut in a direction in which it is held against rotation by engagement of its finger or fingers [8 with the lug or lugs E9. The strut thus is yieldably held in its extended position. On the other hand, when the strut is in a retracted position, underlying the body It] or the related wing, as the case may be, parallel or substantially parallel thereto, the spring [6, by its downward pressure against the free edge of the lug 20, tends to rotate the strut in a direction such that it is urged against the body E or the related wing H, as the case may be. The strut thus is yieldably held in its retracted position. In short, each spring l6 cooperates with the lug 2B of the related strut so that the strut partakes of a snap action in being moved from its extended position to its retracted position and from its retracted position to its extended position, and is yieldably held in both its extended and retracted positions.

Obviously, any suitable means in lieu of elements such as the fingers l8 cooperating with companion elements such as the lugs 19, may be provided to limit swinging movement of each strut from its retracted position beyond its extended position. Obviously, too, any suitable means, such as fiat top and side surfaces on the upper end of each strut, may be provided in lieu of the lug 2B for cooperation with the spring 20 to hold each strut in its retracted and extended positions.

In the present instance the struts l3 are illustrated as being pivotally mounted on the wings ll, transversely with respect thereto, at points spaced outwardly from the body Ill and as being swingable inwardly and upwardly from extended to retracted or folded positions. Also, in the present instance, the under side of the body it is illustrated as being formed with depressions 2| to accommodate the wheels l2 when the struts l3 are swung to their retracted positions. Obviously, however, the struts 13 may be svvingable upwardly and outwardly from their extended to their retracted positions, whether they are carried by the wings I l or by the body Ill.

The fact that the struts l3 and their Wheels I2 are swingable to retracted or folded positions relative to the body H) or the wings H, as the case may be, is of particular advantage in permitting compact packaging of the toy for shipment or storage purposes. Besides, the fact that the struts and their wheels are swingable between retracted or folded and extended positions, considerably enhances the attractiveness and play value of the toy.

Since the struts i3 may be mounted on either the body ID or on the wings II, and since the wings it may, generally speaking, be considered as parts of the body of the toy, the term body element as used in the claims, is intended to mean either the body IE3 or the wings ll.

Without further description it is thought that the features and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and it will of course be understood that changes in the form, proportion and minor details of construction may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A toy airplane comprising a body element, landing wheel units pivotally mounted on said body element for swinging movement between extended and retracted positions with respect thereto, and yieldable means effective to hold said landing wheel units in both extended and retracted positions.

2. A toy airplane comprising a body element, a landing wheel unit pivotally mounted on said body element for swinging movement between extended and retracted positions with respect thereto, and a single yieldable means effective to yieldably hold said unit in both extended and retracted positions.

3. A toy airplane comprising a body element, a landing wheel unit pivotally mounted on said body element for swinging movement between extended and retracted positions with respect thereto, and a single spring means interposed between said unit and said body member and reacting irom said body element upon said unit to hold the latter in both extended and retracted positions.

4. A toy airplane comprising a body element, a landing wheel unit comprising a strut and a wheel carried thereby at its lower end, a pivotal connection between said body element and the upper end of said strut whereby the landing wheel unit is swingable between extended and retracted positions relative to said body element, a bowed leaf spring interposed between the upper end of said strut and said body element, and means on the upper end of said strut with which said leaf spring cooperates to hold the landing wheel unit in both extended and retracted positions.

5. A toy airplane comprising a body element, spaced pairs of spaced lugs depending from said body element, a landing Wheel unit comprising a strut and a wheel carried thereby, a pair of trunnicns at the upper end of said strut, each trunnion being disposed between a related pair of said lugs, the free end portions of said lugs being bent over said trunnions to pivotally connect the strut to the body element for swinging movement of the wheel unit between extended and retracted positions relative to the body element, and spring means cooperating with the upper end portion of said strut to hold said wheel unit in extended and retracted positions.

6. A toy airplane comprising a body element, spaced pairs of spaced lugs depending from said body element, a landing wheel unit comprising a strut and a wheel carried thereby, a pair of trunnions at the upper end of said strut, each trunnion being disposed between a related pair of said lugs, the free end portions of said lugs being bent over said trunnions to pivotally connect the strut to the body element for swinging movement of the wheel unit between extended and retracted positions relative to the body element, a bowed leaf spring interposed between the upper end of said strut and said body element, and a lug on the upper end portion of said strut with which said leaf spring coacts to hold said wheel unit in extended and retracted positions.

7. A toy airplane comprising a body element, a landing wheel unit comprising a strut and a wheel carried thereby at its lower end, a pivotal connection between said body element and the upper end of said strut whereby the landing wheel unit is swingable between extended and retracted positions relative to said body element, a bowed leaf spring interposed between the upper end of said strut and said body element, and a lug on the upper end of said strut with which said left spring cooperates to hold the landing wheel unit in both extended and retracted positions.

8. A toy aircraft as set forth in claim 4 including ribs on the body element defining pockets accommodating the ends of the leaf spring whereby the latter'is held against sidewise and endwise movements relative to the body element.

9. A toy aircraft as set forth in claim 4 including fingers on the strut and formations on the body element with which said fingers coact to prevent swinging movement of the strut from its retracted position beyond its extended position.

10. A toy airplane comprising a body element, a landing wheel unit pivotally mounted on said body element for swinging movement between extended and retracted positions with respect thereto, lug means on said wheel unit, and yieldable means with which said lug means cooperates to hold said wheel unit in both extended and retracted positions.

11. A toy airplane comprising a body element, a landing wheel unit pivotally mounted on said body element for swinging movement between extended and retracted positions with respect thereto, lug means on said wheel unit, and yieldable means with which said lug means cooperates to hold said wheel unit in extended position.

12. A toy airplane comprising a body element, a landing wheel unit pivotally mounted on said body element for swinging movement between extended and retracted positions with respect thereto, lug means on said wheel unit, and yieldable means with which said lug means cooperates to hold said wheel unit in retracted position.

JACOB E. BRUBAIKER. 

